Drama Redux
Since I have started reflecting on my responses to drama in my life, I seem to be identifying a steady stream of strategies that are helping me slice through the troublesome nature of drama and move more fully into keeping my soul in a state of deeper peacefulness. Here are five more suggestions. Let me know if any of these are working for you!
Trust that what you need will be given — Drama has a way of making me feel like I am lacking in some way. Either I do not have enough of what I need or what I do have is being taken from me. Remembering that I live in a beneficent universe guided by the presence of an infinite Giver, I can begin to see all that I actually do have, and I begin to look for and anticipate what is waiting to come into my life if I will simply be open enough to receive it. Drama has little power when my trust is high
Slow Down — When I am sucked into drama, I notice that the increased energy causes a visceral reaction in my body. I speak more quickly, heart pumps faster, my skin reddens and my temperature increases. Phrases like, “hot under the collar” and “making my blood boil” are descriptive of this visceral reaction. Noticing these physical changes is sometimes just enough of a break to make me take a deep breath and slow down. When I slow down, so does the drama.
Let others be responsible for their lives — Drama has a way of drawing me into a know-it-all attitude. I am so focused on the others in the drama and what they need to be doing, that I lose touch with my own self. Trying to 'fix' others or get them to conform to my standards or ways of being only increases the emotional tension both in myself and in the other drama participants. Letting go of my need to be responsible lets me be in the equation just as one individual integer.
Simplify, simplify, simplify — Complexity is a fascinating topic as it applies to drama. Complexity in my own life tends to work like a tangled skein of yarn that only creates more drama. On the other hand, drama is often complex in itself. Consequently, layer upon layer of complexity occludes the beauty and simplicity of my own soul. If I can keep an eye trained on staying simple in thought, in action, in responsibilities, and in possessions, I have a better chance of shaking off the complexity of drama, treating it as if it were nothing more than specks of dust attempting to settle on a rug.
Affirm your preciousness — It's a challenge to maintain a positive attitude in the midst of difficult circumstances. When I find that drama is swirling around me like a funnel cloud, I can so easily forget the importance of me and how beloved I am to God and to others. The drama seduces me into taking my eyes off my own worth and spiraling down into shame, blame, guilt and regret. If I can but stop the spinning and remember that I am marked with the thumb print of heaven, drama loses it power to take away my power.